The Deathlord of Ixia (8 page)

At the instant you strike Tagazin the killing blow, his body shatters into a million frozen pieces which cascade to the ground. The spiked helm drops on top of his pile of smashed remains, crowning them, as if it were a marker fashioned for the Demonlord's grave.

You look skywards to see the second wave of Lavas wheeling away in shocked disarray. They are visibly stunned by your unexpected victory and they flee to the safety of the clouds, fearful of tempting the fate that has befallen Tagazin.

If you possess the Sommerswerd,
turn to 164
.

If you do not possess this Special Item,
turn to 128
.

You dive over a low wall and roll across a mound of ancient rubble in order to break free from the fight. As you spring to your feet and sprint away, you draw on your Magnakai skills of camouflage and psychic defence to increase your chances of a successful escape. It is a wise move; the Cabalah give chase but they soon lose your trail as you make your way deeper into the ruins of Xaagon.

Turn to 270
.

You leap over the gunwale, through a blinding wall of flame, and hit the sea feet-first. The frigid water is shockingly cold, but your Magnakai Discipline of Nexus protects you from its numbing chill and you are able to surface quickly. Burning chunks of timber and sailcloth rain down all around as you strike out towards a flight of stone steps that rise out of the sea to the top of the quay.

Unfortunately, your escape from the blazing ice-boat does not go unnoticed. Upon reaching the steps you are met by a dozen skeletal warriors who are determined to slay you before you can haul yourself out of the icy water.

Ixian Undead:
COMBAT SKILL
 41   
ENDURANCE
 46

These beings are immune to all forms of psychic attack, except Kai-surge and Kai-blast. Also, because you are still in the icy water, you must reduce your
COMBAT SKILL
by 5 for the duration of this combat.

If you win this fight,
turn to 109
.

You draw your weapon and lash out with blinding speed, striking dozens of blows in a matter of seconds, in order to save yourself from these chittering horrors.

Dentaag:
COMBAT SKILL
 51   
ENDURANCE
 38

These beings are immune to all forms of psychic attack, except Kai-surge and Kai-blast.

If you win the fight,
turn to 149
.

For an hour you trek through a swirling white oblivion of a blizzard, trusting solely to your keen survival instincts to keep you safe from rock falls and hidden crevasses. Yet, despite your skills, it proves to be a difficult and treacherous journey: lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.

Gradually, the storm lifts its heavy yoke. Although snow continues to fall, the wind loses its angry intensity, and for the first time since you left the cave mouth, you are able to see more than a mile distant. As you crest an icy ridge, you stop to get your bearings. You look to the south and see the brooding, grey-black waters of the Tozaz Sea lapping at the ice-locked Ixian coastline. To the north and west you are surrounded by unfriendly mountains, and to the east, directly ahead, lies a pass which cuts between two viciously sharp peaks. Beyond the pass you catch your first tantalising glimpse of Xaagon — the city of the Deathlord.

You establish that you are less than three miles from the crystal walls and monstrous towers of Xaagon. You resolve to try to reach the city before the storm resumes but, as you enter the pass, the blizzard returns with malicious vigour. Finding it impossible to continue, you stop and use your Kai skills in order to seek sanctuary from the raging storm.

In this narrow pass you detect only two possibilities for shelter: a cave on the north side, and a circle of fallen rocks a few hundred yards away to the south.

If you wish to take shelter in the cave,
turn to 253
.

If you choose to seek shelter among the rocks,
turn to 197
.

Tagazin quickly recovers from your psychic attack and launches himself through the air at you, his clawed paws outstretched in readiness to tear your flesh.

Illustration III
—Tagazin launches himself through the air, clawed paws outstretched.

Demonlord Tagazin:
COMBAT SKILL
 55   
ENDURANCE
 60

Before commencing the combat procedure, reduce your enemy's
ENDURANCE
points score by the number you have noted in the margin of your
Action Chart
. You may use Kai-surge again to aid you during this combat. This being is immune to all forms of psychic attack, except Kai-surge and Kai-blast.

If at any time during this fight you reduce Tagazin's
ENDURANCE
points score to 25 or less, do not continue.
Turn instead to 168
.

The metal door of this cell is sheathed with ice and there is no visible means of opening it only a hexagonal-shaped keyhole. You crouch down, so that your face is level with the keyhole; then you form your lips into an O-shape in readiness to utter the battle-spell
Power Word
you once learned from Lord Rimoah. The instant the spell-thoughts focus in your mind, you project the power-word
Gloar!
at the keyhole.

Use of this spell so soon after recovering consciousness costs you 2
ENDURANCE
points.

Adjust your
Action Chart
accordingly before
turning to 174
.

You dive and roll over several times to avoid the onrushing bolt of energy. The massive flame-ball passes over your back and explodes through the far wall of the chamber with devastating effect. It tears open a hole in the steel-hard crystal measuring more than ten feet in diameter, and it fills the air with razor-sharp shards. You are peppered in the back by these splinters: lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.

As you stagger to your feet, you suddenly see an opportunity to seize the initiative and carry the attack to the Deathlord.

Turn to 12
.

As you strike down the last of your skeletal foes, you hear Captain Lanza's stirring battle-cry ring out above the noise of the fighting: ‘For Lencia and the House of Sarnac!’ Despite the odds, he and his men have beaten back the enemy and are now within a stone's throw of the quay. You rush to the end of the street and join them at a small flagstoned square, close to the harbour wall.

‘Captain — we must save the ice-boat!’ you shout, pointing to the ship which is being attacked by the skeleton horde. ‘Indeed we must,’ he replies, dourly. He orders a handful of his men to form a protective wall around you and, the moment their shields lock together, you move with them towards the ice-boat.

Twenty yards from the quayside, you break away from the wall and sprint towards the ship's gangplank. You are halfway along the plank when you find yourself confronted by a wedge of skeletal warriors, armed with crude axes and swords. You leap into their midst, striking them down with blurring speed and deadly accuracy. But as the last one falls, its corpse-like body almost severed at the waist, you hear a noise behind you which makes you spin around in fearful expectation.

Turn to 78
.

You rely on your natural agility to descend from the top of the pillar. You achieve the task swiftly, yet your continued close proximity to the deadly electrical rays takes its toll: lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.

The moment your feet touch the coal-black floor you hurry away towards the shadowy exit, eager to distance yourself from the debilitating power that is arcing between the pillars.

Turn to 300
.

The instant you twist the key in the lock, a stunning jolt of raw electrical power runs up your arm and across your chest. The sudden pain makes you cry out in shocked surprise and desperately you attempt to let go of the key. But it is no use — the current holds you firmly in its agonizing grip: lose 4
ENDURANCE
points.

Then you hear approaching footsteps and frantically you redouble your efforts to free your pain-numbed fingers from the electrified key. A troop of a dozen undead warriors appear on the landing and, upon seeing you, they come rushing forwards with swords drawn.

Ixian Undead:
COMBAT SKILL
 42   
ENDURANCE
 50

Due to your painful predicament, you must reduce your
COMBAT SKILL
by 8 points for the duration of this combat.
⁸

If you win the fight,
turn to 103
.

You take over control of the helm and send a man forward to the bow with instructions to keep his eyes on the ship's waterline. The vast bulk of any iceberg lies hidden beneath the surface and you are fearful that collision with a submerged ridge could rip the hull wide open. Guided by the man's shouted directions, and your own Magnakai skills, you steer the ship cautiously into a passage which is overshadowed on either side by two monstrous mountains of ice.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you possess Grand Huntmastery, add 3 to the number you picked.

If your total score is now 5 or less,
turn to 144
.

If it is 6–8,
turn to 255
.

If it is 9 or higher,
turn to 97
.

The moment you step into the light, a wave of acute pain washes through your body as the curtain of shimmering radiance swallows you up. You writhe in agony as gravity releases its hold on your body, and you feel yourself begin to rise: lose 10
ENDURANCE
points.

You are on the threshold of unconsciousness when suddenly the light fades and you find yourself kneeling on a floor of black crystal, staring at the reflection of your pain-wracked face in its highly-polished surface. Wearily you raise your aching head and see, to your horror, a trio of undead creatures scurrying towards you from an open archway. They have barbed tridents clasped in their corpse-green hands, held raised in readiness to pin you to the floor.

If you possess a Bow and wish to use it,
turn to 287
.

If you possess Kai-surge and wish to use it,
turn to 96
.

If you cannot, or if you choose not to use either of the above, then
turn to 64
.

You cast the Brotherhood Spell
Strength
upon yourself and, within seconds, your body surges with newfound energy. You increase your pace until you are running at three times your previous speed. Within a matter of seconds you close upon Tagazin, your weapon drawn in preparation to strike at him as you pass by, but the Demonlord sees you gaining on him and he stops to block your path. He is weaker than before, but he has lost none of his devilish cunning.

As you come to within striking distance, suddenly he leaps at your chest and brings you crashing to the loamy ground.

Demonlord Tagazin (injured):
COMBAT SKILL
 45   
ENDURANCE
 45

This being is immune to all forms of psychic attack, except Kai-surge and Kai-blast.

Conduct this combat for two rounds only.

If Tagazin is killed outright during either of these rounds,
turn to 252
.

If not,
turn to 218
.

As you reach out your hand towards the silvery rod, you suddenly hesitate — your Kai Sixth Sense is warning you of imminent danger.

If you possess the Grand Master Discipline of Telegnosis,
turn to 262
.

If you do not possess this Discipline,
turn to 25
.